Rdxengr wrote:I'm considering buying a small 5th wheel and pulling it with a Ford F150 with a 3.5L EcoBoost engine. It would be a small 5th wheel like the Cougar 246RLS shipping weight 6570lb and a hitch weight of 1525lb. or a Rockwood 8244WS shipping weight 6786lb and hitch weight of 1342lb. The F150 supposedly gets 22mpg highway not pulling. My hope is to see 15 to 16 mpg pulling 8000lb.
Anyone out there actually pulling an 8000lb 5th wheel with an F150 EcoBoost engine that can tell me what MPG they get pulling? Also, how does this configuration handle?

Thanks in advance

Only way you can do it is to get the F150 with the Heavy Duty payload package that gives you maxtow and a 3.73 rear end. Then you won't get the 22mpg on the highway. You need the 3.31 gears for 21-22mpg. Then you won't have the tow capacity. Also don't expect anything over 10mpg. You'll be lucky to get 10 mpg. The 3.5 EB is like any other gasser, they like gas stations when towing. Unless you get the HD package youll more than likely have about 1800-1900lbs max payload capacity. With the HD you'll end up with 22-2500lbs. Give or take some depending on options you add to the truck. You need to remember that anything or anybody you put into the truck omes off the payload. There are some guys that do tow a 5'er with a non HD F150 but are maxed out on their rear axle. Not that thats a bad thing but you just have to be prudent on what you pack. You may not be able to take water or other things you like because your truck can't carry it.

I think you should try to pull it with a smart car! That makes the same sense.

2015 GMC D/A, CC 4x4/ Z71 ,3.73,IBC SLT+
2015 Jayco 338RETS
2 Trek bikes
Honda EU2000i
It must be time to go, the suns out and I've got a full tank of diesel!Lifes short enough without bitch'n about it!

As long as the OP gets the HD payload option the pin weight will be easily within his capability and the engine has PLENTY of power for a lot more weight than the trailer he's suggesting. Getting the kind of mileage he's thinking about not likely to happen with any known technology. To have sufficient power to pulling an 8,000 lb. trailer through the wind it just take more fuel than that to do it. When I tow it's close to 10,000 lb. total weight and my MPG is just a tad over 10 MPG towing. Also to be realistic remember when Ford or any OTHER manufacture brags about their fuel mileage they give you the VERY BEST you could EVER see which is NOT the model that is designed to tow an 11,300 lb. RV. It would take an economy gear and very careful driving to ever meet their EPA ratings with ANY vehicle. Geared for towing but running empty I can get over 20 by watching speed, driving carefully etc but my truck is set up to do just what I ask it to do and that's to EASILY tow my trailer.
Good luck / Skip

The only way I got 22 on the EB was by running the full tank 100 pct on the interstate between TN and PA. Cruise was set at 75.

General daily duties get us about 15 around town.

Towing for us is 10 or 11 mpg. Forgetting the whole conversation about payload and the options required to have enough... keep in mind a fiver will have a much bigger frontal area to push through than my short and narrow TT. I'm pulling about half the weight as skip but getting similar mpg's I would expect towing mpgs to be a bit less than what skip & I are seeing with a fiver.

With this rig, flat terrain, no adverse winds, towing at 58 mph, 11 mpg,maybe 11.7; at 70, 8-9 or less.
I think 12-13 at 45 mph but I haven't had the patience to run through a tankful running that slow.
What I read is that the force necessary to overcome wind resistance (drag) varies with the cube of velocity. That means lots of horsepower at 60-70. Moving an 8x12x30' box at highway speed means the EcoBoost is heavily loaded, likely not where its efficiency advantage lies?